Popular Woodworking 2002-02 № 126, страница 86
Off with the Old Before you can put on a new handle, you have to get rid of the old one. First, mark the estimated length of the tang on the handle — 2" or so should do — then cut off the top of the handle above that point. I cut both composite and wood handles with a hacksaw. If I've miscalculated the tang length, I won't ruin the teeth of my nice backsaw. If you're removing a wooden handle and you want to reuse the ferrule, next make a few saw cuts just above the ferrule down to the tang. Then split away the remainder of the handle, using another chisel as a wedge. You may now be able to drive the ferrule off the tang with a hammer and cold chisel. Or you may need to bore out some of the wood from inside the ferrule to loosen it. If you don't want to keep the ferrule, just cut through its length with the hacksaw and pry it off the tang. The process is similar for a composite handle, which is cast in place around the tang. Using the hacksaw, I cut off the end of the handle. Then I make lengthwise cuts down to the tang to quar- ter the remainder of the handle, which makes it easier to split. Tang Types Tangs on my old chisels are four-sided and tapered to a point. Some are irregular and bear the marks of forging. They are seated in the handle in a stepped pilot hole, as shown in the drawings on the following pages. Tangs on some of my newer chisels are cast, not forged. Those for wooden handles are faceted on four sides, but not tapered. They seat in a single pilot hole. The corners of tapered and faceted tangs dig into the wood to make a tight, torque-resistant fit. Tangs for my composite handled chisels are cylindrical, with small raised "fins" along their length to key them into the composite material formed around them. Driven into a wooden handle bored to the same diameter as the tang (or slightly smaller), the fins might be enough to ensure a tight fit, particularly for a light-duty chisel. I ground facets on the tang and sized the pilot hole accordingly to be on the safe side. To ensure that the edges of the tang dig into the wood, the pilot hole should be smaller than the tang. For a square-section tapered Saw off the top of the old handle with a hacksaw— you won't damage the saw teeth if you hit the tang by mistake. After making saw cuts at the top of the ferrule in to the tang, split a wooden handle away from the tang. To remove a composite handle, saw lengthwise down to the tang in three or four places, then split the remains of the handle from the tang. 85 |
